Quote from Forum Archives on January 29, 2003, 9:37 am

Posted by: btolliver <btolliver@...>

  HOPE 4 KYIV

                       NUMBER FOUR

                        January, 2003

 

       The “In-Pact” Prayer Newsletter of

             Bob and Jo Ann Tolliver

           Missionaries to Kiev, Ukraine

 

Dear Friends, Family, and Intercessors:

 

For the very first day since we have arrived in Kiev, we actually experienced extended periods of sunshine!  It was delightful.

 

We are so grateful that many of you are genuinely "In Pact" with us.  We have already sensed your prayer support on more than one occasion, and we thank you for your faithfulness.

 

Settling In:

 

Hopefully this will be our final "l-o-n-g" letter!  In the meantime, here's our January update, finished on the 29th, our wedding anniversary.  Enjoy, and enthusiastically anticipate shorter ones in the future. 

 

We are getting slowly settled into our apartment.  It's cozy, but certainly different from what we've been accustomed to over the years.  In Collins it was an 1800 square foot three bedroom house with a fireplace, two bathrooms including a hot tub, a nice big family room, four TV's, sitting on 20 acres of wooded Ozarks land.  Here it is a tiny 600 square foot three room (plus small kitchen) flat with one outlet per room and a 1940's version Communist era telephone.  We have hot water heat that is regulated centrally, so we adjust room temperature with either space heaters, or fans and windows. 

 

Instead of two bathrooms, we have one that is divided into two adjacent rooms . . . one with a 1930's tub, aqua lavatory, electric hot water heater hanging above the tub, a 1970's front load washing machine with instructions in Russian, and painted heated pipes on which to hang your towels.  The kitchen has blonde modular cabinets hung high up on opposite walls.  They are completed on one wall with a nice new refrigerator.  On the other wall they are "sandwiched" by a tiny sink on one end and a 1960's era gas stove with no pilot light that we can find.  So, we keep the gas turned off except when cooking.  The kitchen table is about 2' X 3' with four wooden stools, each about 10" in diameter.  We actually use two of them for end tables in the bedroom.

 

Our living room has a couch and two matching chairs, all of which pull out into sleepers.  They are purely Soviet style "utilitarian" rather than aesthetic, and just a bit softer than carpet on a concrete slab.  In addition we have a 1950's era coffee table, a compact fold-up (or down) gate-leg dining room table, a small wall unit containing shelves, drawers, and fold down writing desk, and even a compact liquor cabinet in which to place all our Vodka.  We have enhanced this room with four of our foot lockers which we use for extra seating and storage.

 

The "office" is probably the nicest looking room we have with another one of those sleeper couches in teal green with maple wood trim, and then a desk with locked drawers and no keys with two matching credenza type units, one of which has a locked fold down desk which we can't open. 

 

The bedroom is the largest room, by choice, because it has the most furniture.  Our missionary friends bought us a brand new queen sized bed that is slightly softer than the couch, but much more comfortable.  It has four "shafa's" or wall units in three colors of wood and three different sizes.  They serve as our closets and dressers for clothing and whatever else we need to store.  Finally, there is a storage "dresser/cabinet" with a door that opens downward from the front.

 

This room also has a glassed in balcony with double doors that open onto it.  That is our "garage" where we store things that we don't mind getting wet when it rains or when the snow melts.  We've already had that learning experience.

 

Lest you think we're being sarcastic or are complaining, we're not!  We praise the Lord for His provision, and we thank Him for using this wonderful shelter to remind us of His grace, of how spoiled we can become, and how special the basic things of life really are.  And, . . . give us a few weeks as time and money become available, and we'll do some significant improving.  We'll even eventually have a TV and VCR.  We're also hoping to buy a keyboard for Jo Ann if the funds allow. Somewhere in the process we'll pick up some nails and screws so we can put some stuff on the walls.

 

Up until recently our lone furniture purchase had been a small desk for Jo Ann which is also in this room.  Bob's small desk is covered with printer, phone, laptop, Zip drive, external hard drive, and DVD burner.  Jo Ann's has her laptop, a phone, and her little digital camera bay.  Recently, however, we also purchased a couple of desk chairs, two night stands, a lamp for Bob's desk, and a microwave and a toaster oven for Jo Ann's kitchen.

 

We were told prior to arrival that the simpler and more "basic" lifestyle here would find us happy if we only got one or two things done in a day.  That has already proven to be true.  For example, Jo Ann is trying to find heavy thread for the buttons on Bob's overcoat, and after three separate days of searching, she still hasn't found any.  Hopefully later this week we'll meet a young couple who can help us find it. 

 

Our Church:

 

January 12th was our first official Sunday at the International Baptist Church.  We were so blessed to have our team of SBU students to share that occasion with us.  They were astounding in their ministry of music and testimonies, and their presence and participation really set the stage for Bob's first message to the church. 

 

Because it had been without a permanent pastor for almost two years, the church had really dwindled down to only around 40 or 50 people.  However, that first Sunday there were well over 100 English speaking people from numerous countries and connected to a great variety of ministries, agencies, and institutions.  What a thrill it was after services to get acquainted with some of them during the welcome reception.

 

We were given a royal welcome, and were deeply touched by the thoughtfulness expressed with their traditional Ukrainian welcoming gifts of a red rose for Jo Ann and a container of salt and a loaf of Ukrainian bread for us both.  The rose is still blooming, the salt is being used,and the bread is being eaten.  These people are so thrilled to finally have a pastor, and we are thrilled to become part of this body.

 

We've met twice since then, and each service has been very special.  Within the next few weeks we will begin meeting to share vision and begin forming a ministry strategy.  In that we are here under the appointment of the IMB with some specific objectives, it will take extra time to talk, pray, and blend all of this together into a cohesive strategy.  We value your prayer in that respect.

 

Our Schedule:

 

Since our arrival on January 2nd, we've had a whirlwind schedule.  When we arrived we discovered the Central Baptist Church did not have enough lodging rooms for all of us, so we two ended up staying in our apartment from the very beginning.  We had to scramble to get enough essentials to add to what the wonderful IMB folks had already provided.  For example, we had food and dishes, but no cooking utensils.  But we adapted quickly and, while the team went out for some "orientation sight seeing" to some museums and other places, we started unpacking and establishing communication with family back home.

 

Then on January 5th it was off to four packed days of ministry in Brusilov and surrounding villages.  We did everything from Sunday services to Christmas festivities, caroling, and door-to-door evangelism.  We stayed in homes in the village.  Almost none of the homes had indoor toilets, and the temperature hovered in single digits during the day and dropping at night.  But our team members were unbelievable troopers, and never uttered a single complaining word.  All in all, in four days we conducted eight services, performed around twenty musical numbers, gave sixteen testimonies, preached eight times, brought Christmas greetings and sang carols in some 50 or more homes, and gave away scores of team pictures and Ukrainian New Testaments.

 

Upon our return to Kiev on the 9th, we crashed and then took Friday off to rest and re-tool for upcoming ministry to begin the next day.  However, because of snow and bad roads, Saturday's schedule was cancelled.  That gave us additional much needed rest.  Then came our first Sunday at IBC which we described earlier.  Following that the two of us went to the monthly IMB praise fellowship in the home of Monte and Leighann Self while the team did other things.

 

That brought us to Monday when the schedule really got serious.  Bob began his teaching assignment at St. James Bible College with the entire team accompanying.  While Bob left at 7:30 each morning to teach at St. James, the team headed other directions for ministry ranging from prayer walking to street evangelism, youth meetings, literature distribution, ministry to ice fishermen, orphanage performances, and the like.  Most days the team didn't return until after 9:30 at night.  They have been stretched in every way, but have been courageous and tireless warriors to the very end.  This team has probably been worked harder than just about any team we ever took on a mission trip, and they've never faltered.  Even with frequent varied illnesses, they've just kept going.  We're so proud of them.

 

Sunday the 19th we were back at IBC for services and then an evening "Mobilization Fellowship" with other IMB missionaries and the team, followed by a second week at St. James and out on the streets and in churches through Wednesday.  Thursday we took the team back to Vienna, Austria, gave them a day of sight seeing on Friday, and then we each flew home on Saturday.  Parting was hard, but as many as eight team members are seriously considering a return for longer term missionary service.  Some are already beginning the Journeyman process.

 

At that point we'll try to get into the more reasonable pattern of ministry as we go through personal orientation this week, start three weeks of "Survival Russian" language training beginning next Thursday, and begin developing a specific strategy for the IBC as a church planting and ministering congregation.  It hasn't taken us long to discover some pretty significant needs the church has in order to be prepared for outreach and church planting.  We have our work cut out for us.  We'll also try to find something special to do for our anniversary in the next day or two.  February will also include the CEE annual meeting, being held this year on the island of Cyprus.  It will be nice to have a chance to thaw out a little from the Ukrainian winter.  We'll probably send our next letter out after that meeting. 

 

It is still our intent, once we settle down a bit, to create a nice looking newsletter and also develop a ministry website.  In the meantime, log on to www.hope4cee.com to read about the ministry and events of all our friends and ministry partners in this region of the world.  You'll even find some links to some of our team members in Ukraine even though we don't have anything for you yet.

 

Feel free to contact us.  Bob's e-mail is lifeunlimited@pobox.com.  Jo Ann's is grandma11@pobox.com.  If you ever decided you wanted to call, you'd need to dial 011-380-44-268-8719.  Just keep in mind that when it's 8:00 p.m. in St. Louis, it's 4:00 a.m. in Kiev.

 

Ukrainian Transportation Terms:

 

A couple weeks ago while traveling back and forth to St. James, Bob began to develop a glossary of transportation terms that are characteristic of Ukrainian life.  Here are the first few.  Enjoy.

 

  1.  Traffic:  A radical collection of all kinds of vehicles that gather around you at the most inopportune times.

 

  2.  Brakes:  Things that stop the car at the very last minute just before you touch the vehicle ahead or run through the red light.  Also used to move you forward in your seat so you can see better.

 

  3.  Horn:  The last thing you use, and sparingly.  Used only when all else fails.

 

  4.  Directional signals:  Blinking lights you turn on one second after you have begun to make your turn or change lanes.

 

  5.  Double White Lines:  Marks that separate opposing traffic flows which you use randomly when you run out of room on your side.  Also an indicator that you cannot turn left.

 

  6.  Left Turns:  Something you are not allowed to do in Ukraine except in rare exceptions.  Five right turns or a U-turn are much preferred over left turns.

 

  7.  Single Broken Lines:  Marks on the road the highway department made to confuse drivers about in which lane to drive.

 

  8.  Lanes:  Nobody knows what these are for certain.  They appear to be some linear area about ten feet wide into which the drivers try to see how many vehicles they can drive side by side.  It seems to be some type of competitive sport.

 

  9.  Commuter Traffic Period:  A time of heavy traffic concentration on all streets between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.

 

10.  Merging Traffic:  A new X-streme sport.

 

11.  Shock Absorbers:  Things that wear out quickly and are never replaced so you can get the full sensation of the pot holes in the streets.

 

12.  Pot Holes:  A special feature developed by the Committee of Negligence that tests the dexterity and reflexes of drivers.

 

13.  Tires:  Round rubber things in each wheel designed to carry enough air pressure to enable you to feel every crack and crevice or brick in the street.

 

14.  Sidewalks:  A place where you park your car if there is no other space available.  Also a place to drive when a traffic jam or road construction has blocked your way.

 

15.  Work Crews:  Men and women who try to improve your quality of life by tying up traffic flow, doing repair work without warning signs, and leave unmarked depressions in the road to help keep you awake when you hit them.

 

16.  Pedestrian:  King of the road who has absolute right of way, and whom you try not to splash when choosing which water-filled pot hole to hit.

 

17.  Merge Lane:  A strip of asphalt pavement about eight feet long that gives you an opportunity to see if you can turn onto your street of choice before you get blocked out.

 

18.  Traffic Circle:  The Ukrainian version of hell where all traffic from four to six streets merges into one so you can have terrorizing nightmares trying to find your exit out onto your street of choice.  To many foreign drivers, it is a form of Russian Roulette.

 

In Closing:

 

Again we thank you for your faithful prayer support.  We are sensing the need for our "In-Pact" team's undergirding more and more each day.  We face major cultural, attitudinal, and ministry adjustments ahead, and your intercession will be vital to our successful adjustments.  We've been reminded recently of two of Henry Blackabee's statements in "Experiencing God".  The first, "If you're going to follow God, you must be willing to make major adjustments" began happening of course a year ago.  It is still a regular occurrence.  The second, "You can't stay where you are and follow God." is one that reminds us the Christian life is never static, because He is never static.  He is always at work.  So we face a daily decision, sometimes more than daily, as to what we'll do with Him.

 

Continue praying.  And drop us a note from time to time.  We've already received wonderful e-letters as well as regular mail.  Got some very sweet anniversary cards right on time.  A couple of weeks airmail is a good rule of thumb.

 

God bless you.  We love you and thank God for you.

 

In His Bond and For His Kingdom,

 

Bob and Jo Ann

 

Bob Tolliver
IBC - Hope4Kyiv
lifeunlimited@pobox.com
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